Paleo Ranch began with a commitment to health, nutrition, and animal treatment. Their beef jerky is made with cattle that roam freely outdoors on beautiful grasslands and are 100% Grass-Fed. Also, their protein bars are made with Cage-Free egg white protein. These practices are better for the animals and ensure healthier protein snacks for you and your family. When you support Paleo Ranch, you are supporting sustainable & respectful ranching practices. You are also supporting various charities as they give 10% of their profits to those in need.
With higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin A, vitamin E, CLA, and antioxidants in their bars and 100% Grass-Fed beef in our jerky, everyone is a winner. Their cattle are never confined to factory farms, and they do not add antibiotics, steroids, or growth hormones. Ensuring that their cattle roam freely is ideal for providing a natural and healthy environment for our cattle family. Their Paleo friendly, protein snacks are healthy, nutritious options for athletes, runners, yogis, CrossFitters, Paleo followers, parents, kids, anyone on the go, and everyone in-between. The Paleo Ranch jerky brand is distributed under the same name as Paleo Ranch, and it is located in San Antonio, Texas.
The first review on Paleo Ranch will focus on a 1.5 ounce/42 gram bag of their Sweet Barbecue flavored bacon jerky. This flavor is described as being fully cooked with a hint of sweet barbeque sauce. The bag was purchased at Wegmans in Niagara Falls, New York.
Ingredient Review
Ingredients: Uncured Bacon – No Nitrites or Nitrates Except Those Occurring Naturally in Celery Powder and Sea Salt (Pork, Water, Sea Salt, Sugar, Natural Flavors), Honey, Apple Cider Vinegar, Tomato Sauce (Tomatoes, Salt, Spices, Onion, Garlic, Citric Acid and Natural Flavors), Sea Salt, Lemon Juice, Garlic, Onion, Pepper, Ginger, Cumin, White Pepper, Paprika.
While the pork used is not specifically mentioned on their website, you would have to think the pork is well-sourced. Using beef as an example, the cattle are never raised in a factory farm, not given added antibiotics, steroids, or growth hormones. The pork used is ethically raised. As a result, the highest ingredient rating that can be awarded is a Very Good (9/10) rating.
The liquid marinade is comprised of water, healthy honey, super healthy apple cider Vinegar, a very good tomato sauce, and healthy lemon juice.
Some healthy ingredients added are garlic, onion, black pepper, ginger, cumin, white pepper, and paprika.
The sugar level is acceptable at 5 grams of sugar per 28 grams of jerky for a sweet based flavor. The salt level is sort of high at 485mg of salt per 28 grams of jerky. However, the salt levels are ignored because healthy, minimally processed sea salt is added.
This jerky does qualify to have no sodium nitrite. Instead, the main preservative is sea salt and apple cider vinegar to a lesser extent. Admirably, this jerky does qualify to have no MSG added.
Very Good (9/10) – Ingredient Rating
Taste Review
PALEO RANCH – SWEET BARBECUE BACON JERKY
Written by guest jerky reviewer Paul Rekker
When I open the bag I am surprised how little I smell. I expected to at least smell bacon, but no deal. The jerky is shaped exactly like regular bacon, and it is significantly moist, leaving a noticeable oily residue on your fingers.
When I bite into the jerky I taste mild salt, medium sweet, garlic, light pepper, and the unmistakable taste of bacon. This jerky tastes quite similar to regular bacon, just sweeter.
As I consume more I am surprised that it has not tasted too sweet, but they do just enough to taste sweet (as advertised) without going overboard. This jerky is very fatty, which is good as far as holding the marinade best.
This jerky tastes good enough to warrant a 9/10. Pretty good but it did not blow me away. Cheers.
Written by guest jerky reviewer Stéphane Leclerc
Paleo Ranch – Sweet BBQ Bacon Jerky is awesome. It has a great aroma and tender texture with a slight crispiness. The jerky is packed with flavor without being too bold. The sweetness is under control, and the saltiness is light.
There wasn’t much product to sample, it tasted good, but there wasn’t enough to really determine if it was addictive or not. The slices were quite fatty and certainly fattier than what I’d normally buy. I’d rate this jerky 9/10 Taste Rating.
Here is what Mark had to say about this Sweet Barbecue bacon jerky flavor from Paleo Ranch: “Thanks Paul and Stéphane for the honest taste reviews. First, both Paul and Stéphane have a valid complaint in that sharing a 1.5oz bag between them is not really enough to make a fair judgment, where normally they receive 1oz or more between them. That is in no way Paleo Ranch’s fault. That is just the way it works out occasionally.”
“I pretty much agree with both of your reviews. That is very true, while a flavor name of Sweet Barbecue implies that there is sweetness, in no way was the sweetness overboard. I do not necessarily agree with Stéphane’s assertion that this bacon jerky was too fatty, where in my experience, bacon normally contains a lot of fat. In my opinion, the more fat the better within reason. As far as being a barbecue flavor, while not overly strong tasting, this flavor ultimately comes across as a barbecue flavor.”
“In regards to the texture and whole bacon strips themselves, there is zero doubt that these are genuine bacon strips. I too found the overall taste profile to be well-balanced and very good tasting, where no single flavor stood out.”
“The question now becomes if there was a wow factor. For myself, I would say yes. Not entirely because of the taste itself but more so because this product comes across as tasting authentic and clean tasting, as witnessed by the ingredient list. There are zero hints of flavor enhancers, artificial flavors, a lack of natural spices/herbs, or even soy, which is not normally present in bacon jerky flavors to begin with. I cannot identify a single problem with this bacon jerky and therefore am inclined to award a 10 rating. With Stéphane and Paul at 9 ratings, myself at a 10 rating, a Very Good (9/10) taste rating will be awarded.”
This 1.50 ounce/42 gram bag of jerky sold for $5.99, which equates to $3.99 an ounce. That rates as an upper echelon average price.
Very Good (9/10) – Taste Rating
Bag Review
This resealable professional-looking plastic bag has everything imprinted on the bag, including the front and back. The transparent window to view the jerky is shaped as a pig.
A slogan printed on this bag could be “10 For Good”, which means “10% Of Our Profits Are Donated To Those In Need. Some facts printed on this bag are “Pork Raised With No Added Hormones*”, and “*Federal Regulations Prohibit The Use Of Hormones In Pigs”.
There are no bag categories missing. On the back is a small but good blurb about this bacon jerky. You are encouraged to follow Paleo Ranch on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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